The World-Changing Choice Between Sanders and Clinton On The Climate

[Ferd Berfel]

http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/12/08/world-changing-choice-between-sanders-and-clinton-climate

The pragmatic vs. idealistic divide is a hallmark of the Democratic primary and the party itself. But when it comes to the climate, the debate is not a theoretical one.

We’re close to an international climate agreement that most agree will be both a major step forward and insufficient to avert a catastrophe. Energy will quickly turn to what should be our next steps. The rival Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders campaigns lay out two possible paths: continued incremental advancement versus ambitious goals and sweeping agendas.

The pragmatic vs. idealistic divide is a hallmark of the Democratic primary and the party itself. But when it comes to the climate, the debate is not a theoretical one. Time is running out, and the path we choose makes, literally, all the difference in the world.\

(snip)

Last month Sanders sponsored the “Keep It In The Ground Act” which would “ban future fossil fuel leases on our public lands.” He would ban offshore drilling, Arctic drilling, natural gas fracking, new natural gas pipelines, mountaintop removal coal mining and nuclear power plant license renewals.

Clinton has yet to offer as many details, but what she has released indicates relatively modest goals. Her plan talks up investments in renewables, especially a pledge to install “half a billion solar panels” by the end of her first term. Notably, she doesn’t enumerate any additional federal spending to meet the goal,...

(snip)
Unlike Sanders, her plan is silent (so far) on what should remain in the ground. She did move toward Sanders on rejecting the Keystone pipeline, but her reasoning was that the debate had become a “distraction,” not that it was a beginning of a “keep it in the ground” philosophy.
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Given time Hillary will triangulate her way around this more. But her handlers and polls will have to get their first.

Feel the BERN?

[JaneyVee]

1. Common Dreamzzzzz

Bernie's plan doesn't even set target dates. And we can't "keep it in the ground" until we meet our target dates. You can't collapse an entire industry that powers an entire nation until we pass the threshold for renewables/alt energy. Even my stupid lawnmower runs on gas.

[Dustlawyer]

3. Bernie doesnt plan to make the shift overnight for one.

for another, by an electric lawn mower.

[Wilms]

5. You have a lawnmower?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/1251860815#post29

Pretty obvious that Sanders can kiss the Middle-class Manhattanites with Lawn Mowers vote good-bye.

[JaneyVee]

6. Yup, we do.

And we even have a super fun community backyard with a garden and a pond with koi fish. But we did manage to get solar panels on the building by summer 2016.

[UglyGreed]

7. Middle Class in Manhattan must be

around 150 grand I would say........ and I bet that is the low end.

[upaloopa]

2. Sure Bernie is going to make the fossil

fuel industry disappear

This is another reason why I can't support him. He is all talking points and no "how does it get done"

You are voting for talking points

They sound nice but they don't get anything done.

[MeNMyVolt]

4. +1